To be fair to Obama, the shoulder really degrades after 40 unless you are Nolan Ryan. On the other hand, if you are going to bother you should at least put a tiny bit of heat on the thing. And if you lob it in like W did, at least hit the strike zone like W did.

I love this from the article, "Obama drew a mixture of cheers and boos from the crowd as he strolled out onto the field wearing a Chicago White Sox cap in a nod to his hometown team."

(bolding mine) He really doesn't get it. You don't wear somebody else's stuff when you're officiating for the home team. It's not just that he really isn't an American in any but the legal sense; he is so tone deaf to people generally, he can't conceive of why it would matter that he wear home team regalia in front of the home team crowd.

This is prophetic: Obama is High from drug days and nicotine, and he is from Outside of the American tradition. But his pitching was as skilled as his Reformed medical system will be after all the work for patient's money doctors have been replaced by government drones.

OBAMA: "Given time, the public will be very satisfied with his pitch, once the misrepresentations are cleared away. That pitch contained all the elements voters had asked for in the election.

And what I've tried to say often -- and a lot of times this gets discounted in the press -- is that the experience of having traveled throughout this country; having learned the stories of ordinary folks who are playing extraordinary baseball in their communities, in their neighborhoods; having met all the people who put so much energy and effort into this pitch; having seen the ups and downs and having seen how Washington was always the last to get what was going on, always the last to get the news -- what that told me was that if we were willing to not do what was expedient, and not do what was convenient, and not try to pitch based on the polls today or tomorrow or the next day, but rather based on a vision for how we can play baseball in a way that works for everybody -- if we are focused on making sure that there are ladders of opportunity for people to continue to strive and achieve the World Series and that that's accessible to all, not just some -- if we kept our eye on what sort of baseball do we want for our kids and our grandkids so that 20 years from now and 30 years from now people look back on this generation the way we look back on the Greatest Generation and say to ourselves, boy, they made some tough catches, they got through some tough innings, but, look, we now have a clean locker room; look, our managing staff is revitalized; look, our glove care system works for every single American -- imagine how tough that was and how much resistance they met from the special interests, but they were still willing to do it -- if that was how we played, then I figure that the baseball would take care of itself.

Alan's point is the relevant one. Obviously a president's ability to throw a baseball has no bearing on his fitness for office, and most of Obama's predecessors were prudent enough to make a short toss from their seats. What's telling in this case, though, is that the guy actually drew attention to his inability by failing to acknowledge his limitations.

It's one of those small, but telling, pieces of behavior. Odd that he once again followed Bush's precedent.

This is an annual ritual of presidential humiliation. Presidents invariably suck at even getting close to the strike zone. The fans get to boo and cheer to their hearts content, and in the bars later, there is much critical discussion on the president's pitch.

Whatever. It's a rite of passage, tradition and homage all wrapped up in leather and stitches, and every president, I'm sure, secretly thrills to the prospect of standing on that mound.

As to Obama wearing a White Sox cap? Good. That's his team, dammit. And if there's something that bugs me, it's an opportunistic baseball fan. He got up there and showed his team loyalty like a true fan should, even if he could really care less about baseball or the White Sox. He did it right, from a loyalty perspective.

I certainly admired Bush 41 & 43 when they pitched. There's a good reason they were good at it: They actually have a passion for the game. Bush 41 captained the Yale team. Bush played in high school and went on to own a baseball team. I really get the feeling that these guys probably enjoyed a good session of catch.

Obama just doesn't get it, but then, neither do most presidents. Hoops and golf are his thing.

When I was seven my older brother and I were standing at the edge of a cliff throwing stones. By brother said, "you throw like a girl." Chuh, wai, whu whu whut? I was mortified. How could this be? What did he mean by that? HOW RUDE! Bastard. He taught me not to lift my arm over my head like I was doing. Oh. Well then, Okay, fine. Sideways fling it'll be then. No more windmill windups for me. The horror of that moment plagues my nightmares to this day.

But that, THAT, kills me. He should stick to basketball where he can bust a few good moves.

LOL! I imagine you're correct on both counts. But there isn't a first 3 point shot for hoop season and there isn't a first swing at the Masters.

The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again.

Field of Dreams

As I said, this is a tradition that is upheld by the clumsy and inept on occasion. But that's not the point. The point is the ritual. This is a secular blessing of sorts. Doesn't matter about the quality of the pitch. Only that it's done, thus providing us with a continuing cultural connection to our collective past.

Baseball is a big part of this country. Immigrants play it in corner lots, native Americans play it as well as anyone. Poor and rich alike play it; it's something that links us to our past, and it's a connection between fathers and sons, and grandfathers and grandsons.

The fact that Obama throws like a girl reminds us of the fact that he doesn't share this with us. He shares damned little with us, in fact.

And it really doesn't matter whether I'm a nativist or bigot for seeing Obama as "the other". What matters is this:

Obama sees US as the other.

That's why we're just bitter clingers, typical white people, that's why our opinions are borne of ignorance and fear and superstition, while he sees his as borne of irrefutable logic.

A couple points - it really says nothing about him as a man, but it might say a little about you. And that phrase, "like a girl." Don't event get me started. I'll just say, not like this girl and leave it at that.

So, on the first day of class the teacher asks all the kids who their favorite teams are. They go through the usual rigamarole and then little Johnny stands up and says “I’m a Cubs fan. My great granddaddy was a Cubs fan. My granddaddy was a Cubs fun. My daddy is a Cubs fan. My mommy is a Cubs fan. So I’m a Cubs fan.”

The teacher says, “Oh! well what if your daddy was in prison and your mommy was a prostitute? What would you be then?”

It is hard to understand the art of throwing a baseball without adding 3 other factors that were big parts of the Bush 43 Baseball Legacy as taken over by the Jews.

1. First and foremost, the Black guys that took over Baseball in the 1940s. This was ably brought about by the European Jews who formed the Frankfort, Kentucky School of Marxist Baseball Theory (Fromm, Marcuse) etc. and immigrated to the US as refugees - into a textbook argument that Baseball had changed into a New Left-handed league. Class struggle was out, because the ballplayers themselves were stupid tools of the Elite oppressors - the helmet people, the despicable white Christians smug in their farms, and the favorite heavy - Southern racists.Steroidism, the Frankfort School, argued, had evolved to become a revolutionary path to achieve Baseball justice.

2. At the same time, Stalinists in NYC began forming radical Baseball theory. Their problem with Mel Allen, also a Stalinist in his younger days, was he was too moderate. Sabermetrics also emerged on a Frankfort School, critical studies/politics of confrontation template.

3. The New Lefthanders urged bypassing democracy to mainly focus on forcing change by abandoning fights in institutions where they lacked numbers - such as the player selection process, to focus on where they did have power and could bypass the oppressor owners.

NOtice you did not make any response to my Frankfurt school of Marxism critiques. Just transposed them into a ridiculous alternate context.

The old tricks aren't working so well, Inwood. Blacks have written some interesting things about the trickery that took them so long to resist Jews controlling so much of the black economy in cities and higher places of power in organizations that were supposed to be about black self determination. The rhetorical trickery helped delay the black takeover from Jews by decades.It is no mean feat that Jews managed to run the NAACP from 1909 up until the mid-60s.Or shift blacks out of being the ones who were the merchants and professionals in their own communities as late as the 1920s to Jews running the show and occupying the high-paying, high power positions until the 60s "self-empowerment" movement took off.

A couple points - it really says nothing about him as a man, but it might say a little about you. And that phrase, "like a girl." Don't event get me started. I'll just say, not like this girl and leave it at that.

Fact is, Obama breaks under pressure. He's not a natural leader. He's not one of the greatest of men in this country, and he isn't versatile or particularly quick.

This is reflected in many ways. Teleprompter reliance, far unlike Bush. No press conferences. Terrible muscle composition. Can't throw a ball or walk normally. Can't look people in the eye.

It takes a very, very special person to be able to handle the pressure of the first pitch, and do it very well. Obama may be an OK man, but he's not living up to the hype that he is a great president. A great president can throw a ball. If you really can throw a ball well, then you understand what I'm talking about and are not reflexively lying to pretend boys and girls are the same.

Fact is, at physical trials, females are inferior to males 99 out of 100 times if the selection is randomized (DoD). At sports, this is pretty obvious, even though talented women self select in.

A great woman president would probably throw the ball like Obama just did, and perhaps that's part of your confusion. Obama isn't a woman, and it's worse that he sucks at this. Not only on a cultural level. He simply can't get his way on basically anything, even from allies or weak adversaries.

He's just not an American Man (despite being born in Hawaii, I guess I have to add, even though Michelle hilariously said Kenya was his home country).

When he loses 40+ states in 2012, this will be the basic reason why. He's not man enough to get away from the sycophants, who are too ridiculously partisan to plot a good course. He's just no Bush, Reagan, or Clinton. He's a Gore.

cedarford = democrat who thinks pretend Jew hatred is hilarious. I know a few of those kinds of democrats. I guess he realizes most people roll their eyes at his lame effort, and is satisfied to disturb the people who actually buy his act.

Probably voted for Jimmy Carter, or hasn't yet registered to vote at all.

I am not an Obama fan, but I didn't like it when they booed Bush when he threw out the First Pitch, and I don't like it when they boo Obama when he is throwing out the First Pitch. It is disrespectful and beneath true Americans.

I wish they could force all of those who booed the President to exit the stadium single file so that I could stand at the gate and slap each of them.

I listened to O's interview yesterday where he claimed to be a White Sox fan. When asked who his favorite Sox players were he couldn't come up with a single name. Truly hilarious. You could see his wheels spinning in full panic mode. Truly hilarious.

That is what I noticed (although he does throw like a girl - wait, that's not fair to lots of girls who throw better than him).

The big zero claims to be a White Sox fan. So a reporter throws him a marshmallow - who's your favorite player? Any 8 year old fan could answer that without a thought. The big zero was obviously stumped. He had no response. Then he filibustered. Never answered the question. You ask me who my favorite Yankee is; I say Mickey Mantle. It requires NO THOUGHT WHATSOEVER.

The meaning? He can't even tell the truth about baseball. HE IS A LIAR. He lied about being a White Sox fan.

I have tried to get a few Jewish friends to read this Blog because it, especially in the comments sections, rebuts so much of their blind devotion to the Dem Party & to government solutions for everything. Anyway, for so many Jews my age, it’s always the 1930s & FDR, gurgle, gurgle. But some have pointed to your contumely masked as insight (it’s always “the Jews gurgle, gurgle”) as what they expect from me & mine.

Aside: One of my guys argues that the government should, er, level the baseball field re players by instituting a socialized draft! See today’s WSJ in this regard http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304370304575152100682305066.html-

Notice how the author never has to mention Jews or the Frankfurt school to make his point.

BTW you write

They say one of the Jewish faults is to attempt humor when confronted with unpleasant truth..

Um, except for the "truth" part here, Mrs. Lincoln.

But, for the record (as boring lawyers are wont to say everywhere), let me say for any newcomers here that I am 100% Irish-American.

Actually, I've found that so many Jews who grew up in Inwood have a hate thing for the "Inwood Irish" & are full of stories about the excesses of the thug-class of Inwood Irish. And some Jews, who were met by the Irish Americans who did not resort to fisticuffs, sometimes heard arguments as outré & convoluted as yours, which such Jews seized upon (like the MSM does with the outré Tea Party people they always find) & said "prejudiced, prejudiced all you Irish". More Talmudic or Jesuitical, if you wish, than helpful.

And, in the interest of full disclosure, one of my daughters has married a widower, a nominal Baptist who was married to a Jew, & his son is considered by those who conside such things as Jewish. So I have a Jewish step-grandson, which makes me anathema to you, I guess!

Finally, you’ll like this story from a friend of mine:

[In the ‘50s, while a student, he] was working in a New York Public Library branch… One of [his] jobs was to break up arguments between unrepentant Jewish Communists who at the ages of 70+ were screaming "you're a Trotskyite ... you're a Stalinist".